This invention relates to a method and apparatus for producing a meat-simulating product from protein-containing vegetable materials, particularly soybean meal, and to a meat-simulating product produced from protein-containing vegetable materials.
During recent years, extensive research and development efforts have been applied toward the development of meat-like or meat-simulating food materials prepared from protein-containing vegetable substances. As is known, the chief nutritional value of meat is due to its protein content. However, although meat is a most desirable source of protein, from the consideration of eating pleasure, the production of meat is actually relatively inefficient, in terms of feed input to food output. Furthermore, certain crops such as soybeans, provide inexpensive by-products which have a high percentage of potentially available protein, but which are not normally palatable and/or edible.
One excellent technique for producing meat-simulating edible foods from protein-containing vegetable materials such as soybean meal is taught in U.S. Pat. No. 2,682,466 to Boyer, entitled HIGH PROTEIN FOOD PRODUCT AND PROCESS FOR ITS PREPARATION, issued June 29, 1954. This technique involves the creation of a large number of small diameter spun fibers which are then gathered into bundles or "tows" and thence formed into various type edible products with subsequent operations. While these products are of high quality, the process is complex and expensive, so that the products must be priced in the general range of the corresponding actual meat products. Moreover, the product output per expense unit of equipment is relatively small.
Consequently, there has existed a definite need for a relatively inexpensive method of treating protein-containing vegetable materials to produce a product which would bear resemblance to actual meat in appearance, physical structure and texture, and chewing and mouth-feel characteristics, and that could be practiced sufficiently inexpensively that the product could be priced at a small fraction of the price of actual meat products.
It is a primary object of this invention, therefore, to provide a unique relatively inexpensive method of treating protein-containing vegetable materials to convert them from a generally unpalatable substance to a highly palatable and desirable product that is restructured to resemble meat in appearance, physical structure and texture, chewing characteristics, and nutritional value. Further, these properties and characteristics can be controllably varied quite readily by the method.
Another object of this invention is to provide a novel method of producing highly nutritional, highly palatable meat-simulating food products from protein-containing vegetable materials, particularly soybean meal, such that the method is capable of relatively high production, continuous product output per expense unit of equipment. Moreover, the amount of protein in the product can be greatly varied as desired.
Another object of this invention is to provide a novel method of producing from protein-containing vegetable material a meat-simulating product which can be rapidly and inexpensively dried as it is produced, to be capable of conventional packaging for extended unrefrigerated storage in its dry condition. Further, the stored product can be rapidly rehydrated in a matter of seconds, in a very simple manner, without cooking, heating, autoclaving, or steaming, but rather merely by the addition of aqueous liquid.
Another object of this invention is to provide a novel highly palatable, highly nutritional meat-simulating food product from protein-containing vegetable materials, particularly soybean meal, capable of being dried, packaged, shipped, and stored for substantial periods, without refrigeration, and capable of rehydrating in moments merely by the addition of moisture, and without requiring cooking, autoclaving or pressurizing.
Another object of this invention is to provide, from a protein-containing vegetable material, particularly soybean meal, a meat-simulating food which has a fibrous lace network structure appearing and acting somewhat like the muscle fibers in actual meat, but which product costs only a fraction of that of meat.
Another object of this invention is to provide from protein-containing non-meat material, a meat-simulating product capable of inexpensive and rapid dehydration, and of subsequent simple and rapid rehydration, to effect a meat-simulating foodstuff having all the beneficial characteristics of meat but at a cost of about one-fifth of that of meat.
Another object of this invention is to provide novel extrusion apparatus capable of continuously, rapidly, and reliably converting protein-containing vegetable material, particularly soybean meal, into a restructured, excellent quality, meat-simulating product having a fibrous network structure resembling the muscle fiber structure of meat.
These and several other objects of this invention will become apparent upon studying the following specification in conjunction with the drawing.